White Horse
by AThousandTimesMore
Summary: Sometimes the person you're meant to be with isn't always the person you expect it to be. Liley one-shot


Miley smiled as she looked at the pictures flashing across the screen of her laptop. Her boyfriend of two years, Michael, was in every single one of them, his smile shining and his eyes twinkling in the flash of the camera. Most of them were taken by Miley's friend, Annabel, but a few of them were taken by her. She paused the slideshow on a picture of Michael holding her, watching her, as she slept peacefully, a smile playing on her lips. Moving the mouse up to the File menu, she clicked print and continued the slideshow, listening to the methodic beeps of the printer as it produced an exact replica of the picture she had chosen.

Her cell phone rang and she picked it up from her desk, eagerly pressing it to her ear as she waited for the heavenly voice of Michael. She was only slightly disappointed when she heard Annabel on the other end of the line.

"Hey, Miley, I was wondering if you wanted to go out for lunch today," her friend said. "I know that you're getting ready for Lilly to come next week, but I figured that you needed a break and you probably are just looking through the pictures of you and Michael on your laptop, anyways. So what do you say? Meet me in thirty minutes at that coffee shop down the street from your apartment?"

"Why not?" Miley said, laughing. "And how did you know that I'm looking at the pictures on my laptop?"

"Because that's all you do besides homework," Annabel said. "Now hurry up, hop in the shower, get some makeup on, and meet me for lunch. I'm bored and I've already called everyone else and they're all busy. So I guess I'm going to have to endure a couple hours of you talking endlessly about Michael."

"Thanks for…hey!" Miley yelled.

"Love you, Miley!" Annabel chirped cheerfully before hanging up. Miley just laughed and hung up her phone, glancing one more time at the pictures flashing across the screen of her laptop before running for the bathroom and hopping into the shower. She quickly blow dried her hair, put her makeup on, and looked at herself one last time in the mirror to make sure that she looked at least halfway presentable before putting her coat, hat, scarf, and gloves on, grabbing her purse, and heading out the door.

The last picture she saw on her laptop was one of both her and Michael sitting on a white horse, her arms wrapped around his waist and her head leaning on his back as he stared forward with a determined expression. He was just like her knight-in-shining-armor, the man who had come into her life to sweep her off her feet and carry her off to a fantasy land where everyone lived happily-ever-after. Michael was the man of her dreams, and she fully intended to do her best to make their relationship last.

The moment she stepped outside her apartment building, the cold hit her. The winters were a lot colder in New York City than they had been in Malibu, California, but if that was the price you had to pay in order to attend Juilliard, one of the most renowned schools in the world for music and acting, then she would gladly pay it. She had been attending Juilliard for almost a full semester now and she loved every aspect of it. Except, maybe, for the winter.

She trudged through the slush towards the coffee shop, keeping her head down against the wind and hoping that she didn't run into anyone. Someone bumped into her shoulder and she careened off to the left, thankfully, right into the doorway of the coffee shop. Pushing the door open, she lifted her head as a wave of warm air hit her. Annabel waved from the back of the shop and Miley made her way towards her, pulling off her scarf, hat and gloves as she squeezed her way between tables and chairs.

"You're on time!" Annabel said happily, standing up and giving Miley a hug before sitting back down. Miley pulled off her coat, draping it over the back of her chair, before sitting down across from her. "I ordered you your usual, a large black coffee with no sugar and no cream. I wasn't sure if you wanted to eat here or go out somewhere else, so I didn't get us anything to eat."

"Its fine, we can get something here and then go window shopping like I know you were planning on doing," Miley said, grinning at a blushing Annabel. She stood up and walked over to the counter where she ordered two sandwiches with soup and asked them to bring it over to their table. After paying, she walked back to where Annabel was sitting and sat down.

"So, the only reason you ever offer to go out to lunch with me and endure, as you say, my incessant babbling about Michael, is because you need to tell me something painful that you would much rather say in public because you know I won't break down and cry in a public place and you can't stand it when people are crying," Miley said, grinning across the table at Annabel who was suddenly interested in studying the pattern on the table. "Annabel, what is it?"

"I…it's about Michael," she said quietly.

"Well, then it can't be that bad," Miley said, smiling. "I mean, he's only the most amazing, loving, perfect boyfriend in the world. Do you know what he said to me the other day? He told me that as soon as he graduated from college, he was going to propose to me. Can you believe that? He's already thinking about marrying me! Can you get any better than that?"

"Miley…I saw him yesterday," Annabel said.

"Really?" Miley asked, wrinkling her nose in confusion. "That's weird. He said that he wasn't feeling very good and that he thought he had something contagious so he was just going to stay in and he didn't want me to come over because he didn't want me to get sick. Isn't that so sweet of him? I would have been selfish and asked him to come over…"

"Michael was with someone," Annabel interrupted, cutting Miley off completely. The brunette looked at her with narrowed eyes. "He…he was with another girl."

"What are you saying?" Miley whispered.

"Can't you see what he's doing to you, Miley?" Annabel asked desperately. "He's cheating on you! It was definitely him, too, because the moment he saw me, he grabbed this girl's hand and lost himself in the crowd. They were at the movies together, Miley."

"No, you're wrong," Miley said, shaking her head back and forth. "He was sick yesterday. And he's sick, today, too. He called me and told me!" She stood up, throwing her coat on and heading towards the door. Annabel threw twenty dollars on the table and ran after her, throwing her own coat on as she pushed the door open in front of her.

"Miley, please!" she yelled, but the brunette just ignored her, determined to prove that Michael was being faithful to her by going to his apartment and checking up on him. He didn't live far from her, so it only took ten minutes to get there. She entered his code in the keypad and ran into the building, up the stairs, and to his door. Raising her hand, she hesitated before knocking three times. The door was opened by a redhead wearing only a pair of shorts and a tank top.

"Can I help you?" the girl asked.

"Yeah, um, is…is Michael here?" Miley whispered.

"Oh, yeah, of course," the girl said brightly. "Here, come on in, I'll go get him. He just got out of the shower." Miley stepped into his apartment and the girl closed the door behind her before gently knocking on the bathroom door and slipping inside. There was some murmuring before she emerged again, this time with Michael right behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist and his chin resting on top of her head. "See, I told you that there was a brunette out here waiting for you."

"Miley," he whispered, his hands dropped from around the girl's waist and his feet taking an automatic step back away from her. "Hey, I told you that I was still sick and I still might be contagious. What are you doing here?"

"A better question might be what is she doing here?" Miley asked in a thick voice, pointing to the girl. "And who is she?"

Michael hesitated.

"And don't try to lie, I can see right through it," Miley snapped.

"This is Charlotte," Michael said, wrapping his arms back around her waist.

"What's she doing here?" Miley repeated.

He took a deep breath. "I don't think we should be going out anymore, Miley," he said. "I don't think we're right for each other. Charlotte understands me more. I'll always love you, but…it's just not the same, the thing Charlotte and I have and the thing you and I have. We're more like each other. You and I…we're opposites. I'm sorry, Miley."

Miley stared at him with wide eyes. "Wait, what?" she choked, tears starting to stream down her face. "Is this really how you're going to tell me? With your new girlfriend in your arms? How long has this been going on?"

"A year and a half," Michael said quietly.

The brunette's mouth dropped open and she started shaking her head. "No, this can't be happening," she whispered, backing away slowly. Her back hit the door and she held back a sob as she quickly turned around, fumbling with the door knob before opening it and running down the hallway, down the stairs, out of the building, away from him. Away from the man she had thought was the one for her.

Annabel was standing outside the door, an anxious expression on her face. She stepped forward as Miley stumbled towards her, wrapping her arms around her in a hug as she rocked her back and forth. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. "I just wish that I'd seen it sooner. Then it wouldn't be as painful."

Two hours later, Miley was sitting on her bed with Annabel, a cup of straight black coffee in her hands and a cup of soup in front of her. She set the coffee and soup on her nightstand and turned away from Annabel. "Annabel, don't…don't take this the wrong way, but I kind of want to be alone right now," Miley whispered.

"Okay," Annabel said quietly, standing up. "But if you need anything, and I mean anything, just call me and I'll see what I can do, okay?"

"Thanks," Miley whispered, and Annabel left her apartment, quietly shutting the door behind her. A few minutes, Miley's phone rang and she picked up, thinking that it was Annabel calling to make sure that she didn't want anyone there for her. She was surprised to hear Michael's voice on the other end of the line.

"Hey, Miley, it's Michael," he said, and Miley stood up, sorely tempted to hang up on him, and started pacing the room. But she still loved, more than she knew she should, especially after what he had just done to her. "I…I was wondering if we could get together some time to talk this whole thing out."

Miley hesitated, biting her lip. "Michael, I…I don't know if that's the best idea right now," she whispered, leaning against the wall and holding her other arm across her chest, her empty hand under her other arm. "We…we need some space."

"Can…can you at least hear me out now?" he asked hopefully.

"Yeah," she whispered.

"Look, it was really stupid of me to go behind her back and do that," he said quickly, almost as if he was reading off a piece of paper or had memorized it. "And I really regret it. Charlotte…she's nothing to me. I don't even know her very well. We've just been…I don't even know what I was thinking. All I know that I love you. All I want is you. Do you love me?"

"Yes," Miley whispered, tears starting to stream down her face.

There was a pause. "Will you give me another chance?"

She hesitated. This was the crossroads. She could go on and date Michael, pretending that this had never happened, or she could tell him no and try to start over again, find someone else who would respect her and love her like she deserved. "No," she snapped, hanging her phone up and dropping it to the ground.

Sliding down to the floor, she let her sobs take over, her body shaking as she pulled her knees to her chest, trying to hold herself together. There was a knock on the door and more sobs shook her as she realized that Michael had been calling from his cell phone and had probably been waiting outside the door to surprise her and was now about to try to convince her to start dating him again.

"Go away!" she screamed.

"Miley?"

The brunette stood up and stomped over to the door and yanked it open. "I said to…go…away," she trailed off, surprised to see her best friend, Lilly Truscott, standing in front of her with a frightened expression on her face. The blonde had a large suitcase and a book bag sitting on the ground beside her, which she hurriedly picked up.

"I'm sorry, I thought…" Lilly started, slinging her book bag over her shoulder and snapping open the handle on her suitcase. She glanced up at Miley and let go of her suitcase, her eyebrows meeting in the middle of her forehead, the frightened expression replaced by one of concern. "Miley, what happened?"

"I…I'm sorry, I didn't…I didn't know it was you," Miley whispered, stepping out of her apartment and reaching for Lilly's suitcase. "You're…you're early. You just surprised me, is all. I didn't mean to yell, I thought…I thought you were…never mind. What…what are you doing here early? I thought you were coming next Wednesday."

"Miles, don't change the subject," Lilly said softly, grabbing her wrist and turning her around. She wiped some tears from her cheeks with her thumb and lifted her chin so they were looking each other in the eyes. "Something's wrong. You don't have to pretend like everything is fine; I'm your best friend. I can see right through the façade. You can trust me."

Miley collapsed into Lilly, who put her arms around her and held her as she sobbed.

"Now what's this all about?" Lilly asked when Miley had finally calmed down. She was sitting next to the brunette on her bed, who was curled up and cuddled in her side. Lilly had an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close and, she had a feeling, keeping her from falling apart. "How about you get this off your chest?"

"It's…its Michael," Miley whispered, tears leaking out of the corners of her eyes and trailing down her cheeks. "He…Annabel told me that…that he was at the movies yesterday with another girl and I didn't believe her so I went to his apartment and…her name was Charlotte."

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry," Lilly whispered.

"Then he called me and asked me if I loved him," Miley said quietly.

"What did you say?" Lilly asked.

"Yes," Miley whispered. "And…and he asked me if I would give him a second chance."

"You said yes, didn't you?" Lilly asked sadly.

"I said no."

"That's what I…wait, broken-hearted girl say what?" Lilly asked, her eyes wide with surprise as she stared at Miley.

"No, I said no," Miley repeated. "That's why I practically screamed at you when you knocked on the door, because I thought it was Michael trying to win me back. And…and I was really surprised because it was you, and…hey, you never did say why you're here a week early."

"Oh, well, uh, you know how your dad called you and said that he wouldn't be able to make it up this year?" Lilly asked, looking away as Miley nodded. "Well, he called me and asked me if I wanted his ticket because he said it didn't make sense to waist a first-class ticket like that and he knew I was coming to visit you, anyways. My mom said that she didn't mind if I visited you for an extra week and…well, here I am."

"Is that all?" Miley asked, her eyes narrowed.

"I…I missed you, Miles," Lilly whispered, staring at the wall and facing away from Miley. "You have no idea what it's like…you're gone, Oliver's gone, God, even Jackson's gone. Do you know what it's like to miss Jackson of all people? And do you know who I've been hanging out with? Rico. Midget Rico that owns the food stand on the beach. Yeah. That's how lame my life is right now. Cause…because I'm nothing without you, Miley. I…I need _someone_ to hold on to."

"Lilly, why didn't you tell me?" Miley asked.

"Because whenever we talked it was always Michael this, or Michael that, or guess what Michael did," Lilly said, faking a happy, cheerful voice. "And I didn't want to bring you down from that. You're my best friend, Miley, and I have to be happy when you're happy…"

"And I have to be sad when you're sad," Miley finished, placing a hand over Lilly's. "What happened to that part? That was a promise we made to each other, Lilly. Not just you to me. We're best friends; we're supposed to tell each other everything."

"Well, that didn't really work out when we live thousands of miles from each other," Lilly snapped, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Well, sorry that I didn't want to turn down one of the biggest opportunities of my life," Miley yelled back.

"You know what, I'm going to come back when we're both calmed down," Lilly said, standing up and pulling her coat on angrily. "Call me when you're ready to talk."

"Lilly, no, I'm sorry," Miley whimpered.

"Just…give me at least an hour," Lilly said, heading for the door. She paused as she rested her hand on the doorknob and turned to Miley. "You're still my best friend, Miles," she whispered. "I just…I need to cool off before I do something stupid." She opened the door and quickly left, slamming it behind her and angrily heading out of the building.

When she got outside, she stared up at the window that she knew Miley was staring out of even though the glass was fogged up and she couldn't see in. Sticking her hands in her pockets, she headed away from Miley's apartment building and suddenly came up with what she was going to do. Her stride lengthened as she gained her purpose and she headed towards Michael's apartment.

When Lilly had visited the year before, she and Miley had spent almost all their time at Michael's apartment, so Lilly practically had the route from Miley's apartment building to Michael's memorized. She managed to get in when someone left the building and took the stairs two at a time up to Michael's floor. Hesitating before his door, Lilly finally mustered up the courage to knock and took a step back as she waited for him to open it for her.

She was surprised when a redheaded girl opened the door and automatically assumed that it was Charlotte, the girl Michael had been cheating with behind Miley's back. Plastering a fake, but convincing, smile to her face, she held her hand out. "Hi, I'm one of Michael's friends," she said, taking the surprised girl's hand in her own. "You must be Charlotte; Michael's told me all about you."

"He…has?" Charlotte asked uncertainly.

"Yeah, do you mind if I come in really quick?" Lilly asked, letting go of Charlotte's hand. "I need to give him a message. I promise that as soon as I give it to him, I'll leave."

"Okay," Charlotte said, still uncertain as she stepped aside for Lilly to come in. The blonde gave the redhead a smile before stepping inside. Charlotte scampered off and knocked on the bathroom door, slipping inside. There were garbled words and Lilly imagined the surprised look on Michael's face when she told him that there was a blonde waiting for him. The door opened a few seconds later and Michael came out dressed in a pair of jeans.

"Lilly?" he asked, confused.

"Hey, Michael, you still remember me!" Lilly said happily. "Good, I don't have to remind you!"

"Charlotte said that you have a message for me?" he asked hesitantly.

"Oh, yeah, I have a message from Miley, which I've completely made up since she's at her apartment bawling her eyes out because you were cheating on her," Lilly said, her fake smile still plastered on her face. "She says, or rather, I say, that you're an asshole and that if you ever go near her again, I will personally make sure that you physically won't be able to go near her." She stepped forward and slapped him across the face. "That was what Miley should have done," she said.

"And now this message is from me," she said, her tone turning from pleasant to threatening. "If you even call her or look at her or even cross paths with her, I will personally hunt you down and cut your you-know-what off, and let me tell you, it will be slow and painful. And I don't think your friend Charlotte over there would like you as much if you weren't able to satisfy her anymore."

Charlotte stared at Lilly with wide eyes and stepped sideways into the bathroom. Michael looked like he wanted to follow her. Lilly took another step forward so she was less than a foot away from him, drew her arm back, curled her hand into a fist, and punched him in the face. "And that's all I'm going to do," she said, seething with anger. "I want to do a lot more, but I don't want to get sued for murder, so I'm going to leave it at that."

She turned away from him, stomping out of his apartment, downstairs, and outside. Having used up all her anger, she started trudging back to Miley's apartment building. When she got there, she sat down outside the building to think about what she was going to say when she went back inside. Someone called her name and she looked up to see…Annabel? Was that her name? Yes, Annabel, Miley's friend, standing in front of her.

"Hey, what're you doing down here?" Annabel asked, pointing up to Miley's apartment. "Aren't you supposed to be up there with Miley? Like, surprising her because you came a week early or something?"

"Yeah, we got in a fight," Lilly murmured.

"Well, you aren't doing any good down here, let me tell you that," Annabel said, putting her hands on her hips. "I just got a phone call from a distraught Miley Stewart because she thinks that she's just driven her best friend away. So you get your butt back up there and tell her that you're still be friends." Her face and tone of voice suddenly softened. "Tell her that you love her."

Lilly stiffened. "Where would you get that idea?" she asked.

"Oh, I don't know," Annabel said with a small smile on her face. "Why in the world would Michael be walking around with a black eye swearing about blonde best friends?"

"He deserved it," Lilly muttered, putting her head in her hands.

"You have to tell her how you feel," Annabel said, sitting down next to her. "Things will never get better if you don't."

"How do you know how it feels?" Lilly snapped.

"Because the same exact thing happened to me, although it was with a guy," Annabel admitted. "He was my best friend for seven years, and the whole time I started to develop these feelings for him. It was eating away at me. I finally told me and I found out that he felt exactly the same way about me. Now I'm not saying that Miley feels the same way about you, but she's been your best friend for a long time, trust me, she's told me about it countless times. And if she doesn't feel the same way about you, she won't be stupid enough to let go of a friend like you, especially if you go around beating up ex-boyfriends regularly."

"Thanks," Lilly whispered, smiling slightly.

"So are you gonna come up with me or do I have to make Miley come down and get you?" Annabel asked, standing up and extending a hand to help Lilly to her feet. "And I don't think you want Miley to come down and get you. She's done that to me before and it was not pretty. Not pretty at all."

"Yeah, I'll come up," Lilly said, grinning as she took Annabel's hand and hoisted herself to her feet. They walked side by side up the stairs and to Miley's apartment, those few moments together spent in a comfortable silence. Annabel knocked on the door and it was opened almost immediately by a distraught Miley.

"Lilly!" she yelled, throwing herself at Lilly and wrapping her arms around her neck. The blonde stumbled back and Annabel smiled at her as she hesitantly wrapped her arms around Miley's shaking body.

"I'm going to leave you two alone," Annabel said softly. "And Lilly, you should probably tell Miley what happened to Michael before he comes around here and starts yelling at her for it."

"Wait, what happened to Michael?" Miley asked, pulling herself out of Lilly's hug as Annabel chuckled softly to herself and walked away. Lilly took Miley's hand in her own, leading her into the apartment and shutting the door behind her.

"Well, I…I was really upset when I left, and you know how we were always at his apartment the last time I visited, so I knew exactly where it is," Lilly started babbling as Miley crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow at her. "And I was really mad, not at you, but at Michael, so I went over there, and stupid Charlotte opened the door…"

"Lilly, what did you do?"

"She invited me in, so of course, I walked in," Lilly continued nervously. "He came out of the bathroom and I said that you were distraught and then I slapped him across the face and told him that that's what you should have done to him. Oh, and I called him an asshole for you. And then I said that if he ever bothered you again and I found out, then I would personally hunt him down and cut off his…his…"

"You didn't actually say that, did you?" Miley asked, her expression somewhere between horrified, amused, and awed.

"I said that I'd cut off his you-know-what," Lilly said, blushing. "Then I punched him in the face and told him that I wanted to do more but I didn't really want to go to jail for murder. I left and I sat outside your apartment building, then Annabel came along, said she saw Michael with a black eye, I told her about what I did, and then she told me I should…I should…"

"That you should what?" Miley asked impatiently.

"Nothing," Lilly murmured.

"I can always ask Annabel," Miley said.

"She wouldn't tell you, not if I asked her not to," Lilly said, turning away.

"What happened to us, Lilly?" Miley asked softly, tearfully. "We used to tell each other everything, even after I moved on the other side of the country. What happened to you?"

"You happened to me, okay?" Lilly yelled, turning to a surprised Miley. Tears started to stream down Lilly's face. "Okay, are you happy that you got your answer?"

"Are…are you saying that you don't want to be friends with me?" Miley whimpered.

"Yes, because I can't stand it when you walk into the room," Lilly whispered as Miley cringed away from her. "Because every single time you're with me, I have eyes only for you, and you don't know it. You giggle about boys and flirt with them and I have to pretend that I know what you're talking about because I really don't like them. Whenever your eyes flash when you talk about boys, my heart starts to break. When you giggle when you flirt with a boy, it breaks a little more. When you talked about Michael of the phone, it broke a little more. Because I don't want you to be with anyone but me."

Miley gaped at her.

"And I'm sorry that it happened like this," Lilly said, backing away from Miley. "I…I wasn't going to say anything because Michael…"

"Lilly?"

"Yeah?" Lilly breathed, tears stinging her eyes as she desperately hoped that Miley wasn't going to yell and scream at her to get out and never see her or talk to her again.

The brunette stepped forward, standing less than a foot away from her. "Don't talk about Michael," she whispered before leaning forward and pressing her lips against Lilly's. Lilly tensed in surprise, her eyes wide as Miley's lips moved against hers. She finally closed her eyes and gently moved her lips against Miley's, wrapping her arms around Miley's waist as the brunette wrapped her arms around Lilly's neck. They finally pulled back, out of breath and amazed.

"I'm so sorry," Lilly whispered, kissing Miley's nose softly and leaning their foreheads together. Miley smiled at her and brought her hand to Lilly's face, gently stroking her cheek.

"I love you," she whispered.

"I love you, too," Lilly whispered back as she once again pressed her lips to Miley's.

"Wait, wait," Miley said, pulling away from Lilly. "I…I can't do this without…without being in a relationship. And I can't do a relationship if you're going to leave in less than a month."

Lilly bit her lip and pulled an envelope out of her back pocket. "I was originally going to save this for the end of my trip, but since this came up and we…well, I got accepted into New York University for my second semester. I'm going to school here in New York." She handed the envelope to Miley who opened it with shaking hands, tears welling up in her eyes as she started to read.

"I…this is great!" Miley said with a forced smile.

"Miles, what's wrong?" Lilly asked with concerned.

"You know…Michael…he was just someone to make you jealous," Miley whispered, sitting down on her bed. "I kept hoping…maybe you would realize by the way I talked about him, always complaining…but I didn't complain that often, did I? I…I'm not good enough for you, Lilly. I can't let you waste any time on me."

"What?" Lilly asked incredulously. "After…after _years_ of wanting to date you, you're going to turn me down because you don't think you're good enough?"

"I don't have anything for you!" Miley yelled, tears streaming down her face. "He…he took it all Lilly, okay! Michael took everything of me and…and I can't get it back!"

"He could never, ever take you," Lilly said gently, sitting down next to Miley and wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Miley pulled away and Lilly flinched, stung.

"I'm not lying when I said I gave him everything," Miley muttered, barely able to hold back her sobs. "He…he was my first, Lilly. I gave him my virginity and I can't get back, okay? There, I said it. All this time, I've been saving myself for you. Through high school, so many guys wanted me to have sex with them, but I said no, because…because I was _saving_ myself for someone. Then…then Michael came along and…and I thought, 'Oh, here's a chance to make Lilly jealous and want to be with me.' Except I wasn't expecting to…to go that far with him. I had been saving myself for _you_, Lilly. It was all for _you_. And I gave it away to him."

Miley dissolved into tears, sobs wracking her body as Lilly stared at her in shock. After a few moments, the blonde pulled the brunette into a hug, smoothing her hair down and rubbing her back as she whispered soothing words in her ear.

"It's okay," she whispered. "Everything is going to be okay, I promise. I don't love you any less than I did. God, Miley, I love you so, so, so, so, so much. I love you. I _love_ you. _I love you_."

But Miley continued to sob.

"Look at me, Miley. _Look at me_," the blonde said firmly, making Miley look up at her and into her eyes. "You're the most perfect person on the world, okay? Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. What you did with Michael doesn't matter because he's history. We might as well forget about him. What does matter is us. Here and now. Not the past, not the future, but _right here_ and _right now_. Okay? "

Miley nodded, tears still streaming down her face. Lilly leaned forward and kissed her tears away and then kissed her gently on the lips. The brunette nuzzled into Lilly's neck and the blonde wrapped her arms around her. A few minutes later, Miley started to snore softly and Lilly laid her gently down on her bed, pulling back the blankets and tucking her in. She smiled fondly at the brunette before leaving, quietly closing the door behind her.

* * *

Miley's eyes fluttered open and she sat up slowly, looking around her apartment for Lilly only to find that the blonde had disappeared. She was suddenly wide-awake as she swung her legs out of bed, throwing the blankets off her, and looked around the room for a note that her friend might have left, but there was nothing.

"No, no, no," she whispered to herself, her eyes starting to tear up. "This can't be happening. She really doesn't love me. She's left me."

The door opened and Lilly walked in to find that Miley had collapsed on the floor, tears pouring down her face.

"Oh my God," she murmured to herself, quickly putting down the bags in her hands and rushing to the brunette's side.

"I thought you left," Miley sobbed as she leaned into Lilly. The blonde wrapped her arms around Miley and pulled her close.

"I could never, ever leave you," she murmured. "No matter what, I will always come back. I promise."

"Why did you leave, then?" Miley sniffled.

"I was hungry," Lilly said, shrugging and making Miley laugh. "And I found this great Chinese restaurant down the street, too! I've got chicken and rice and stir-fried vegetables…"

"Of course you would think of food at a time like this," Miley said with a small smile, wiping her eyes on the back of her sleeve.

"Are you going to be okay?" Lilly asked, concerned.

"Just…promise that you'll never leave me," Miley whispered, leaning her head on Lilly's shoulder.

"Never," Lilly promised. "I'll always be here for you. I'll be your knight-in-shining-armor riding a white horse."

_**Well, there you go. I hope you liked it. It's sort of a lame ending, but I couldn't think of anything else and it's taken me two weeks to write this, which is really weird because it only takes me about three days at the most to write a one-shot. Thank you to Taylor Swift for writing her song "White Horse," off of which this story is based on, and thank you to everyone who has been reviewing my stories! I really appreciate it. The more you review, the faster I try to get chapters and stories up, so go ahead and REVIEW!!! Please? Once again, thank you all so much for your support.**_

_**AThousandTimesMore**_


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